I can buy food at a konbini: ask where things are, agree to have a bento heated, turn down a bag, pay with a transit card or cash, and understand what the cashier asks.
コンビニで買います
コンビニで買います
The goal: get through a konbini (convenience store) checkout from the first line to the last. Three steps: find the item, put it on the counter with これ、おねがいします, and answer the cashier's three or four questions. All are yes-or-no questions: はい or いいえ is enough.
You know the cashier's questions from module 5; the table below collects them.
Two refusals. いりません is “I don't need it”, said directly. けっこうです is the same, only softer and more common in stores. Both are polite: ません and です are polite endings.
Bags cost money: a ふくろ is a few yen, added to the total. If you have your own bag, decline one.
An ICカード is one card for the train, the bus, and the register. Cash is げんきん, change is おつり, the receipt is レシート.
A konbini isn't only food: you pay bills, withdraw money at the ATM, make copies on the コピーき, and send packages. Many are open 24 hours. By the register there's a pot of hot おでん.
Sounds: ん in おべんとう is a mora of its own; ー in カード marks a long vowel; the particle を is read as お.
Common mistakes:
• NOT いいえ、ありがとう — a word-for-word “No, thank you”: say けっこうです.
• NOT いいえ、だめです — だめです means “not allowed”, not “I don't need it”.
• NOT おでんがいます — for things and food, use あります.
• NOT これをおねがいします、おにぎり — the predicate goes last: おにぎりをおねがいします.
• NOT てんいんがあります — for people, use います: てんいんがいます。
• NOT このサンドイッチはたかいじゃないです — an い-adjective takes くないです: たかくないです。
What the cashier says
All the questions are yes-or-no questions: a short answer is enough.
| Cashier | Translation | What you answer |
|---|---|---|
| いらっしゃいませ | Welcome, come in | nothing; you can nod |
| あたためますか | Shall I heat it up? | はい／いいえ |
| ふくろはいりますか | Do you need a bag? | いりません／けっこうです |
| おはしはいりますか | Do you need chopsticks? | はい／いいえ |
| ポイントカードはおもちですか | Do you have a rewards card? | ありません |
| 780円です | That's 780 yen | げんきんで／ICカードで |
What people buy at a konbini
Food is heated at the register; bags cost money.
| Word | What it is |
|---|---|
| おにぎり | rice with a filling, wrapped in nori seaweed |
| おべんとう | a boxed lunch; it's heated at the register |
| サンドイッチ | a sandwich; it isn't heated |
| おでん | hot food by the register: egg, daikon radish, tofu in broth |
| ふくろ | bag: a few yen, added to the total |
| ICカード | a card for trains, buses, and the register (for example, Suica) |
Lesson notes
コンビニで買います
The goal: get through a konbini (convenience store) checkout from the first line to the last. Three steps: find the item, put it on the counter with これ、おねがいします, and answer the cashier's three or four questions. All are yes-or-no questions: はい or いいえ is enough.
You know the cashier's questions from module 5; the table below collects them.
Two refusals. いりません is “I don't need it”, said directly. けっこうです is the same, only softer and more common in stores. Both are polite: ません and です are polite endings.
Bags cost money: a ふくろ is a few yen, added to the total. If you have your own bag, decline one.
An ICカード is one card for the train, the bus, and the register. Cash is げんきん, change is おつり, the receipt is レシート.
A konbini isn't only food: you pay bills, withdraw money at the ATM, make copies on the コピーき, and send packages. Many are open 24 hours. By the register there's a pot of hot おでん.
Sounds: ん in おべんとう is a mora of its own; ー in カード marks a long vowel; the particle を is read as お.
Common mistakes:
• NOT いいえ、ありがとう — a word-for-word “No, thank you”: say けっこうです.
• NOT いいえ、だめです — だめです means “not allowed”, not “I don't need it”.
• NOT おでんがいます — for things and food, use あります.
• NOT これをおねがいします、おにぎり — the predicate goes last: おにぎりをおねがいします.
• NOT てんいんがあります — for people, use います: てんいんがいます。
• NOT このサンドイッチはたかいじゃないです — an い-adjective takes くないです: たかくないです。